A Decade of Charter Schools: From Theory to Practice. CPRE Policy Briefs.

Bulkley, Katrina; Fisler, Jennifer

Charter schools have grown in number over the last decade from a small number in just a few states to over 2,300 schools serving over 575,000 students in 34 states and the District of Columbia. This policy brief reviews research done on charter schools and summarizes key findings. Charter schools tend to be much smaller than district-operated schools (DOS), with a median enrollment of 137 students compared with 475 students in district schools. Compared with DOSs, charter schools are relatively more autonomous, may have little or no union involvement, employ teachers who are less likely to be certified, and often focus more on internal accountability, that is, accountability to teachers, parents, and students, than on accountability to their chartering agencies. Parents appear to be highly involved with their charter schools and generally give them positive marks. Surveys suggest that students are generally satisfied with their charter schools and show that teachers typically have high satisfaction ratings. There is little or no evidence that charter schools are pulling the most successful students from DOSs. Questions still remain with regard to innovation, accountability practices, equity issues, and student-achievement outcomes, all of which may be answered through further research. (Contains 49 references.) (RT)